What does everyone think of Myst Clones? Not nescessarily Myst clones, but games with the same type cursors and stuff? Do you like it? Do you hate it? I have a secret that is secret, but I'll tell you it later on in the year. Near the end maybe. If someone manages to guess, don't give it away to anyone, in fact just e-mail me, and tell me what you think I am talking about.

Everyone knows my secret. True, I am. I am getting help from Jonathon (Dark Fall maker) I am not going to tell you the story, but I worked on the story hard and there are lots of twists to it, and it's a suspenseful game. I am guessing I'll have it done around Spring 2003. I just barely started the game. It's going to be a lot like Dark Fall, as I am using Strata Studio, which is what Jonathon did. I'll release a demo around the end of this year, a little preview of the game. It's going to have mostly outdoor enviroments, and a few indoor enviroments too. I also would like some suggestions on puzzles. What are your favourite puzzles? I don't want to sell a [blip] game, so I need to know what you guys like in an adventure game. All I can say is, with this adventure game, I won't let anyone down. I might've never made one before, but I do know what I am doing when it comes to cool sound effects. The music will be made by me actually. My band. Although we play rock, this is going to be little catchy suspenseful music that will loop in the background. Our site is here: www.listen.to/no-offenceWe're going to have some crazy music, but don't get me wrong, it won't be rock. Rock doesn't really fit in an adventure game. I hope I make this game good enough, so that DreamCatcher will publish it. Jonathan tells me that he was approached by 2 publishers, and turned them down. I want to get approached. I'll let you guys judge if my game is good enough, when I release a demo. I'll have a site with updates on the project, and screenshots of the game as it progresses through the year.

I love Myst clones! I know the term is used as a negative, but to me it screams "play me!" I'm not too big on inventory based games becasue many times the stuff is used in completely illogical ways and I really hate the "just try everything until something works algorithm of puzzle solving". It's also not a real-world type of approach. If you were really in the game environment would you just pick up a bunch of stuff at random without knowing what it was needed for? Wouldn't you look at some problem and say "gee I need a screwdriver, or knife, or matches, or...." and go find what you need?

Give me a good first person Myst clone any day! I am not totally against 3rd person game as I liked Broken Sword and Circle of Blood and King's Quest 7. I guess I'm more into figuring things out than hunting for stuff to use.Ed

Well I kinda hate to tell you this EdA, but there will be a lot of stuff with inventory, as a lot of people like that kinda stuff. Myself for one. It's going to be a game though where you pick up something and say, could be useful. It's not one of those games where you go and pick up one thing, and say this definantly goes here. I am still developing some of the puzzles on paper. I need some more challenging ideas...

I could see myself getting sued for making a Shivers 3. It depends on how good I sell this game. If I sell this game a lot, I'll make an unofficial sequel to something by popular demand... maybe. I was thinking I might make The Others, but with no The, so I won't get sued. I loved the movie, and the game would be a great hit.

I love Myst, and I do enjoy Myst clones. Sometimes I want to play a third person game, but sometimes I really want to play first person, as myself. I like 3D engines, but slide shows games are good too.

I think it's great that you are doing a game with just yourself, or a small team. That way it will really have the mark of the designer. I look for a game that looks like the same game all the way through, not "done by a committe". I'm also looking forward to your music.

As for puzzles, I prefer "easy" puzzles, unlike many of our veteran gameboomers. I happen to like inventory puzzles, because I have a better chance of solving them. I think word puzzles are also kind of nice, but you don't see them in games very much - I think it's a translation issue. If you are getting a game translated into multiple languages a word puzzle isn't going to do it.

On the visuals (very important to me) I can't wait to see what you come up with. My request would be to not make the visuals too "perfect" - lots of computer generated art looks, well, computer generated. Having something that isn't always single point perspective would be great too. But, I'll be happy to play anything you come up with.

I don't think getting a big name publisher is a bad thing. A person has to eat, pay rent and have some fun! If it works for you, go for it.

Oh, forgot - are you submitting your game to the Independent Games Festival - http://www.igf.com/ .The festival doesn't seem to be too kind to adventure games, though an adventure game did win last year. Of course, some people didn't think of "Bad Milk" as an adventure game!

I think this is wonderful, Alex, and you know we will be thrilled for you if you can accomplish this. I personally love inventory based games, rather than having to solve machinery puzzles, for instance. Another independent that you might wish to take a look at is Passage: Path of betrayal. I think it is absolutely wonderful that Jonathan is helping you, as well, as he surely knows the pitfalls to avoid.I don't much like the style of play for Myst or Myst clones, just a personal preference, but some good ones (my opinion, of course) are Celtica, Gordak and Secrets of the Luxor, if you haven't taken a look at them. Outdoor scenery is wonderful if you're exploring, and set to a good musical score and good sound effects, could be a winner.

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"How could drops of water know themselves to be a river? Yet the river flows on."- Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Originally posted by Dangerous Darrin:What does everyone think of Myst Clones? Not nescessarily Myst clones, but games with the same type cursors and stuff?

I think nearly all so-called Myst Clones aren't really much like Myst at all except for the interface. But a point-and-click, snapshot-type interface works fine for adventure games. And I never heard of anyone getting motion sickness from Myst.

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I also would like some suggestions on puzzles. What are your favourite puzzles? I don't want to sell a [blip] game, so I need to know what you guys like in an adventure game.

Well, you'll never please everybody. Some people like music puzzles, others hate them. Some people are colorblind so puzzles that depend on color recognition would be impossible for them. Some people like sliders, others hate them. If you include puzzles like that, it would be good to make them skippable so they won't hold up the gamers who are unable to do them.Same goes for action sequences, timed sequences, or dying in the game. Anything that makes the gamer have to repeat the same bit of the game over and over and over again is undesirable. Personally I don't like action/timed sequences or dying and would happily do without them because they make me have to save and restore and mess up the immersiveness of the game.

One thing that is fun in a game is a humorous Easter egg or some other little surprises that you can find that may not be critical to finishing the game, but which make the gameworld seem richer and more like a real place.

I like first person games vey much, I like to be able to look around without having to cope with arcade type puzzles or pixel hunting. A good puzzle is a puzzle that makes you use your brain and not the one that is made ackwad just to make the game look longer. The same goes for tile puzzles and mazes. Lot of people do not like them I do if they are made interesting and relevant to the game.Keep them coming!

There used to be a great thread will all sorts of do's and dont's aimed at gamemakers and designers, but I can't find it. It's been a while, but I figured you could get loads of good advice from that thread. Oh well...

I love Myst-like games also (note the deliberate use of -like not -clone ). I really don't enjoy timed puzzles, action elements or dying too often if at all!